Unique new section of the Via Belgica opened in Houthem
Author: Harry Lindelauf
Photography: Harry Lindelauf
The famous Via Belgica has finally been given a visible form for modern visitors in South Limburg, thanks to a new yellow road surface measuring ten metres in length and eight metres in width. Opposite Château Sint Gerlach in Valkenburg-Houthem, this replica of the road can now be viewed, complete with cart tracks and a man-high Roman milestone.
The newest Via Belgica section lies a few hundred metres away from the locations along Sint Gerlach Street and the Putweg where the original Via Belgica has been confirmed. Since 2017, the local history society Houthem–Sint Gerlach has been working to make the Roman road visible.
Chairman Jos Lodewick of the local history society, former provincial executive Burlet, archaeologist Karen Jeneson, Camille Oostwegel Sr., and several sponsors made the project possible.
Brother Leo Disch of the Abbey of Sint Benedictusberg in Mamelis carved the inscriptions into the French limestone pillar. Christian Kicken supplied the text so that the result is historically accurate.
